Madeline (1952 short)
'''Madeline '''is a 1952 American animated short produced by United Productions of America's Jolly Frollics cartoon series and Columbia Pictures. It was directed by Robert Cannon and produced by Stephen Bosustow. It is a strong adaptation of the first book by Ludwig Bemelmans. Plot The opening credits show Madeline introducing herself to the audience, looking in curiously before walking into center frame and giving a polite curtsey. She then looks at interesting things in the world around her as acknowledgements are given to the people who worked on the special. She then curtseys again and walks offscreen. The story opens with the Old House in Paris and the narrator introduces the twelve little Girls and Ms. Clavel. Madeline joins her place in line and gives another curtsey. The scene transitions several times to show the Girls having dinner, brushing their teeth and going to bed. The next scene shows the Girls' daily walks. They leave the house every morning at half past nine regardless of the weather. The Girls generally know right from wrong, they smile at a kind lady feeding a hungry horse while the frown at a thief for stealing diamonds. Ms. Clavel takes them on explorations all over Paris, seeing many incredible sights. Madeline is noted by the narrator to be the smallest of the Girls, and often gets herself into trouble. When Ms. Clavel treats the Girls to helium balloons, Madeline is so light-weight that she floats into the air. Ms. Clavel shrieks in panic and cries for help. A crowd of Parisians gather in awe as a police officer calls in the fire brigade. Two firefighters bring a ladder truck and rescue Madeline from the air. Madeline is none the worst for her adventure and smiles gleefully in the excitement. Ms. Clavel is relieved to see Madeline on the ground again, but sees that she could still fly off due to her balloon. She resolves to hold her hand on her head for the rest of the walk, keeping her firmly on the ground. The scene transitions to the kitchen of the boarding school. Madeline is seen trying to coax the resident mouse out of the wall. The other Girls watch on with caution and when the mouse squeeks at them, they jump on a chair in fear. Madeline isn't scared at all and becomes quite fond of the mouse. Later in winter, the Girls and Ms. Clavel ice skate peacefully on a frozen pond in the city. Madeline is said to love this time of year. Later still on a class trip to the zoo, the Girls are looking inquistively at a tiger in his cage. The tiger roars and the Girls run to Ms. Clavel scared. But Madeline is not afraid of the tiger and says, "pooh pooh" to mock him. The other Girls become more brave seeing Madeline stand up to the beast. Later as they are crossing a footbridge over the River Seine, Madeline breaks out of line, climbs up on the rampart and begins dancing across the bridge. Ms. Clavel is very frightened by Madeline's brazen act and quickly grabs her and places her back on the path. The class finally arrives back at the House. In the middle of one night Ms. Clavel wakes up, sensing something is wrong. She races to the Girls' room and finds an unsettling scene. Madeline is sitting in bed crying in pain. The other Girls have no idea what's wrong. Ms. Clavel rushes to the phone and calls the local physician, Dr. Cohn. He comes by on bicycle and examines Madeline. He quickly realizes she is suffering from appendicitis and calls the local hospital to prep them for their arrival. He carries Madeline out to a waiting ambulance as everyone in the House cries in fear and sadness. The abulance takes Madeline to the nearby hospital. Madeline wakes up two hours later after a successful surgery. She's feeling much better as her hospital room is full of flowers. She soon eats and drinks and the nurse keeps her comfortable by adjusting her bed crank. Madeline entertains herself by looking at the unique crack on the ceiling that looks like a rabbit. She also looks out the window at the beautiful surroundings. Ten days later, Ms. Clavel suggests that the class visit Madeline at the hospital. They buy flowers and a vase and go to the hospital. The Girls are quite impressed to see that Madeline gets toys, candy and a dollhouse in her room during her recovery. They play with her for a while before Madeline shows them the scar on her stomach from her appendix surgery. The Girls are extremely envious of her by now. Eventually it's time to leave and the Girls leave by taxi in the rain. Back at the boarding school, the Girls have dinner, brush their teeth and go to bed, albeit with much less enthusiasm than before. They seem pouty, but Ms. Clavel does not notice. In the middle of the night she wakes up, once again sensing something is wrong. She races to the Girls room, finding them all sobbing and asks what's wrong. They say they want to have their appendixes taken out like Madeline so they might enjoy her time off. Ms. Clavel smiles relieved and says that the Girls are perfectly healthy and that it's time to go to sleep. The short ends with a FIN title card. Trivia *This marks Madeline's first onscreen appearence. *The short was nominated for the 1952 Academy Award for best short subject (cartoon). *Ms. Clavel is the only main character with her own dialogue. *The Girls wear red uniforms and hats in this adaptation. *Owing to its simplicity, some fans consider the short to be the most faithful onscreen adaptation of Madeline.